R.I. Governor Chafee finds his political home at last

WARWICK — Governor Chafee walked into the canvassers office, greeted two of the workers by name and then confirmed with the stroke of a pen what his actions had suggested for years.He was a Democrat.One...

WARWICK — Governor Chafee walked into the canvassers office, greeted two of the workers by name and then confirmed with the stroke of a pen what his actions had suggested for years.

He was a Democrat.

One day after word broke that the one-time Republican senator-turned-independent-governor was changing his affiliation, he made it official and then did his best to make it nonpolitical, telling reporters he became a Democrat not to improve his chances for reelection but because he supports the party’s values and believes he’s “better off as part of a team.”

“I always was looking for a political home,” he said at Warwick City Hall, where he served on the City Council and later as mayor. “There comes a time when the issues are so big that you want to be part of a team addressing them.”

The move brought ringing endorsements from prominent Democrats, including all four members of the state’s congressional delegation and Lt. Governor Elizabeth H. Roberts, who described Chafee as “an unwavering partner” and “outspoken supporter” of “the core values of the Democratic Party.”

It also prompted an e-mail that restated a day-old congratulatory message from President Obama and provided a link for people to donate to the Democratic National Committee.

In contrast, the state Republican Party, in its own fundraising appeal, called Chafee a “tax-and-spend limousine liberal” who’s afraid “of losing the governor’s race in 2014.”

But even as Chafee became Rhode Island’s first Democratic governor since Bruce Sundlun left office in January 1995, the switch did not change the fact that Chafee’s poll numbers are low and he faces, by all indications, a difficult road to reelection. As a Democrat, he could encounter a potentially grueling Democratic primary, with General Treasurer Gina M. Raimondo and Providence Mayor Angel Taveras — both riding higher approval ratings and sitting on more campaign cash — considering runs for governor.

“We’ll see,” Chafee said when asked about that possibility.

While he downplayed the political ramifications of his change, a Public Policy Polling survey of voters in January suggests it helps his chances. The automated telephone survey ran several scenarios, which had Chafee finishing third as an independent but second as a Democrat, should he emerge as the party’s candidate. The survey also showed that 35 percent of Democratic primary voters wanted Raimondo to be the party’s candidate, however, while 22 percent wanted Chafee and 19 percent wanted Taveras.

Chafee said Thursday that he had spoken with Taveras about the affiliation change, and when asked about speculation that he was urging Taveras to run for lieutenant governor, he said, “We’ll have our discussions.”

Taveras, in response, said. “There is no condition under which I would run for lieutenant governor.”

“I am seriously considering running for governor. This is the only office I would consider other than the office of mayor,” he said through his campaign finance director, Peter Baptista. “News reports or statements implying otherwise are simply untrue.”

Chafee, the son of the late Republican Gov. and U.S. Sen. John H. Chafee, arrived at City Hall shortly before 10:30 a.m. He hugged Dorothy McCarthy, a voter registration technician, and then filled out a voter registration form, checking the box for party change and checking the box for Democrat on one of the lines below.

Then he headed upstairs to the council chambers and stood at the desk that was his for three terms. There he said repeatedly that his focus as a councilman, mayor, senator and now governor has always been “delivering services at the lowest-possible cost.”

Asked whether he is definitely running for reelection, the 60-year-old governor said that “the official announcement will be coming,” but in the meantime he’s “absolutely doing all the things necessary.”

Among those activities on Thursday was a midday fundraiser that was sponsored by Stephen Zubiago and Frank O’Brien, lobbyists for the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America. Tickets for the event, held in Providence at the University Club, started at $200, O’Brien said.